Persistence pays for student job-seekers

One summer day last year, junior Nichole Stucki walked into Nick's English Hut and told a bartender she wanted to work there part time. She filled out an application form and left. In a week, she got a call and learned she had a job.\nStucki took the right approach. The 75-year-old pub never advertises job openings because the stream of applicants never dries up, said Carey Pittman, a bartender of 12 years at Nick's.\nWhile inquiring worked for Stucki, there are various other ways to discover non-advertised openings, which account for 80 percent of the existing part-time jobs, said Melissa Ritter, who helps job seekers at the IU Career Development Center. The center, located at 625 N. Jordan Ave., advises students on finding part-time jobs on and off campus.\nMany employers post jobs on the Internet or in newspapers, but Ritter said students may have to seek good jobs out on their own. \n"Students have to know about a hidden job market," Ritter said.\nJob seekers can find non-advertised jobs through friends and families. Or they can personally visit businesses and check job openings. \n"You always want to use any avenue at your disposal," Ritter said.\nStucki visited Nick's at "the right moment," when the bar was looking for workers, Pittman said. About 90 percent of the part-time waitresses at Nick's are those who came in at the right moment, he added. "So if you really want to work for Nick's, you just keep at it," he said.\nJunior Kosin Mekeatngam works at Circuit City, a job he landed by directly asking. In July 2001, he walked into a Circuit City in Indianapolis, where he was temporarily living, and asked for a job. On the spot Mekeatngam was asked to fill out an application packet. He then answered 200 multiple-choice questions, which took an hour and half. For the following week he kept calling the store, asking about the result, he said.\n"Then the manager asked me to come in, did an interview, asked me a couple of questions," Mekeatngam said. "And he said I was hired."\nAfter working there for a month, Mekeatngam moved back to Bloomington when the fall semester began, and was transferred to the electronic shop's Bloomington outlet, he said.\nIf reluctant to ask for jobs directly, students can visit the Student Employment Office, part of the CDC, which helps students locate part-time jobs on and off campus, said Jan Nickless, who oversees the employment office. The office constantly posts part-time jobs at http://www.indiana.edu/~career/parttime/jobs.html, Nickless said. Also, staff of the CDC can advise students on interviews, proper dress and issues regarding getting a job, Ritter said. \nFriends and families can also help find part-time jobs, though it may depend on students whether they get them and keep them.\nIn late spring, a library science professor told senior Judith Garrison about an opening at the IU Undergraduate Library. Garrison researched the position, confirmed she met its requirements, filled out an online application, took an interview and won the job, she said.\nGarrison, today a master's student in library science, said the professor's advice served as a reminder, but added, "Nobody helped me get this job."\nJunior Robin Fulk's brother worked at T.I.S. Bookstore for four years, and she said it helped her land an interview in early August 2000. She has worked part-time since then at the bookstore, but the connection alone probably hasn't guaranteed her the position.\nThe bookstore hires many part-timers before the beginning of each semester, preparing for the first busiest two weeks, said Lara Stolz, who trains student workers at T.I.S. But after the busiest period, the management lays off about half of them, after examining their performance, Stolz said.\nSchool organizations advertise jobs on the IU Career Development Center Web site, and politeness and professionalism can be keys to landing those openings.\nEarly September last year, junior Daraius Dubash found an opening at the CDC online. He e-mailed the center his resume and won an interview. Dressed in an ironed shirt and slacks, his shoes neatly polished, he met with Kathleen Matthies, assistant director of the Arts and Science Placement Office. But they discovered that Dubash's crammed class schedule couldn't fit the position.\nMeanwhile, his dress, politeness and answers left a lasting mark in Matthies. Four months later, she offered Dubash a job. \n"I was like, 'OK. That sounds good,'" said Dubash, now a senior.\n"What really impressed me was that he sent me a thank-you letter and then sent me another letter stating that if there was any opening, he would be more than willing to take it," Matthies said.